William Carter went out for some air, and also wanted to use the restroom. But after wandering around the courtyard with its layers of rockeries for quite a while, he still hadn’t found the bathroom. As he kept circling, he somehow ended up outside, and inexplicably arrived at the second floor of the “Linshui” club.

Chapter 4 Ethan Brooks

The lights in the “Linshui” corridor were set especially dim, with a cold, bluish hue. Every private room was tightly shut, completely isolating the inside from the outside world.

The thick red carpet absorbed all sound. Following the indicator lights, William Carter walked toward the innermost area.

After using the restroom, William Carter washed his hands, thinking he might as well text his cousin and slip away—he really didn’t want to listen to them sing any longer.

At that moment, two staff members in Linshui uniforms came out of the restroom, chatting beside him.

With the sound of running water in the background, their voices came through clearly to William Carter.

“Are kids these days all so tough?”

“Yeah, I can’t tell if he’s stupid or just naive.”

“Seriously, what a pointless show of bravado. That woman is obviously a pro—just a couple of tears and she’s suddenly a pure white lotus? I bet she just didn’t expect to run into someone as ruthless as Edward Harris Jr., so she planned to bail at the last minute and let that new kid deal with him for her.”

“Edward Harris Jr. never goes easy on women. She didn’t want to suffer, so she pushed someone else into the fire—truly vicious.”

“The funny thing is, that kid actually believed her nonsense. Hilarious. He thinks just because he’s a guy, he’ll be safe? Edward Harris Jr.’s crowd is a mess in their private lives. With the way that kid looks, if he goes in to deliver drinks, he’ll probably come out half dead.”

One of them turned off the faucet, paused, and suddenly asked, “I heard from the manager that the kid’s still in high school, right? If something happens, this’ll be all over the news.”

The other scoffed, “Who’s to blame? Takes two to tango, no one’s forcing him. And don’t worry, with the Wang family involved, this news will never get out.”

William Carter wiped his hands with a tissue, thinking to himself that the world in these rich-family stories was just this bizarre—rule of law was nothing but a decoration.

Of course, if it weren’t like this, how would those idiots get away with being monsters?

William Carter wasn’t the type to stand by and do nothing. He planned to report this to the front desk later—he couldn’t just watch some kid get ruined.

He took out his phone and started typing a message to his cousin: “Cousin, I’m heading back by taxi first,” his finger hovering over the send button.

Just then, he heard the two staff members talking as they walked to the door.

“What’s that kid’s name again?”

“I think his surname is Xie, Xie… Ethan Brooks, right, Ethan Brooks!”

His finger froze.

Ethan Brooks?!

Shit!

William Carter was stunned all over, then shoved his phone into his pocket and suddenly strode out, calling after the two staff members.

“Wait a second!”

The two staff members were startled. They turned to see a tall, fifteen- or sixteen-year-old boy hurrying out of the restroom.

They worked at Linshui and had decent service manners. Seeing William Carter’s clothes, they could tell he came from a good background, so they asked, “Hello, is there something we can help you with?”

William Carter’s tone was tinged with urgency: “Which private room?”

The staff were confused. “Sorry?”

William Carter suppressed his impatience. “Which room is Ethan Brooks in?”

The staff looked troubled. “Well…”

William Carter stared at them intently, his dark eyes full of seriousness, and said, word by word, “Ethan Brooks is my classmate.”

The staff sighed inwardly—they weren’t heartless, after all. “He’s in 305.”

William Carter murmured a quick “Thank you,” then dashed downstairs.

On his way down, he sent another message to his cousin: “I’m in 305.”

If it were a stranger, William Carter would still help, but he wouldn’t be this anxious. The name Ethan Brooks instantly pushed his worry and unease to the limit.

Because besides “attracting perverts,” Ethan Brooks had another trait: he was especially good at provoking others’ sadistic urges.

In short, a magnet for disaster.

For others, it might just be a night of drinking and maybe throwing up. For Ethan Brooks, it meant getting his legs broken or his head smashed. The author really pulled out all the stops to torment Ethan Brooks.

Cursing the trashy setup of the original novel, William Carter ran to the front desk, his voice mixed with the panting from running: “Miss! I need to report something!”

The receptionist was stunned for a moment, then recognized him as someone brought by Charles Foster, and asked respectfully, “What did you say?”

William Carter: “I want to report—there’s trouble in 305!”

The receptionist’s perfectly made-up face stiffened slightly. “Trouble? Okay, I’ll—I’ll check.”

She was about to contact the third-floor staff, but before she could even connect her walkie-talkie—

William Carter slapped the desk and shouted, “There’s no time! Is your manager here? Lend me a few people first—my friend is in 305, and I feel like if I’m even a second late, something will happen to him!”

Receptionist: “……”

Where did this brat come from? She really wanted to call security to throw him out. But for The Young Master Foster’s sake, what could she do? She could only force a smile. “Okay, okay, please don’t worry.”

In the back courtyard of Linshui, inside a private room decorated in a traditional style.

Charles Foster was exhausted after singing his heart out, and was sitting on the sofa about to open a bottle of wine when his phone suddenly lit up.

He swiped to unlock it and saw messages from his cousin.

Two of them.

[Cousin, I’m heading back by taxi first]